New York, New York - Judge Juan Merchan on Monday rejected US President-elect Donald Trump's request to delay sentencing set for later this week in his hush money case.

Merchan ruled last week that Trump's sentencing should go ahead on Friday despite his upcoming inauguration, rejecting his attorney's argument that his election victory should spell an end to the case.

In a two-page decision responding to a Monday filing, the judge noted that prosecutors had opposed delaying the sentencing and said it should go ahead as planned, barring a last-minute successful appeal by Trump to a higher court.

"This Court has considered Defendant's arguments in support of his motion and finds that they are for the most part, a repetition of the arguments he has raised numerous times in the past," Merchan said.

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"Defendant's motion for a stay of these proceedings, including the sentencing hearing scheduled for January 10, 2025, is hereby DENIED," the judge concluded.

Merchan has given Trump, the first former president ever convicted of a crime, the option of appearing either in person or virtually at Friday's sentencing and has said he was not inclined to impose jail time on the former and future president.

Trump's attorneys had asked the judge to delay sentencing while they appeal his conviction by a Manhattan jury.

He was convicted in May of 34 counts of falsifying business records to cover up a hush money payment to porn star Stormy Daniels on the eve of the 2016 election to stop her from revealing an alleged 2006 sexual encounter.

Trump was certified as the winner of the 2024 presidential election on Monday, four years after his supporters rioted at the US Capitol as he sought to overturn his 2020 defeat. He is set to be sworn in as president on January 20.